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March 11, 2013

What does the right of self determination mean if not the right to be what you want to be. One peoples’ right to self determination negates the right of others in the same space. The right of self determination is not predicated on whether you will be democratic. The right of self determination on one level is the right to discriminate. If Israel is denied the right to favour Jews in immigration or to refuse political rights to others in its midst, it is denied the right of self determination.

I was raised in a religious Jewish environment, and though we were not strongly Zionist, I always took it to be self-evident that “Israel has a right to exist.” Now anyone who has debated the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will have encountered this phrase often. Defenders of Israeli policies routinely accuse Israel’s critics of denying her right to exist, while the critics (outside of a small group on the left, where I now find myself) bend over backward to insist that, despite their criticisms, of course they affirm it. The general mainstream consensus seems to be that to deny Israel’s right to exist is a clear indication of anti-Semitism (a charge Jews like myself are not immune to), and therefore not an option for people of conscience.(Read more…)

With U.S. President Barack Obama’s visit to Israel planned for this month, speculation is building as to the main focus that he will be bringing to his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. While pundits on both sides of the ocean are expecting the two leaders to put a positive public spin on their meeting and relationship, the fact is that the tension and disagreements of the past four years are not easily forgotten, not by them and not by their advisors.(Read more…)